The Sense of Paper

Paper appears to be a metaphor for the lives and personalities of the books characters. Charlie, whose life experiences have left her a fragile as tissue paper, Alan, attractive, unique and possessing an unusual edge, Cassie, durable and constant as brown shipping paper, Nick, flawed but with an inner strength.....well, you get the idea. There are many lessons to be learned from this read. Lessons in art history, the process for producing quality handmade paper and and the importance of that quality in the production of great masterpieces by artists such as Turner. Through the main characters, we also venture into the realms of obsession, erotic love, war and its consequences, suicide, obsession and death. A remarkable and engrossing story. I doubt if you will find a more interesting and compelling read this year.

Reporter Charlie Holden, now in her 40s, is back in London after some grueling and dangerous years covering world conflicts, recovering from physical and emotional wounds she received in Kosovo four years earlier. In London, Charlie comes across painter Sir Alan Matheson, who suggests she write a book on paper, art paper manufacture in England and the work of Turner. He provides her with research ideas, contacts, and shows her his small and precious collection of Whatman papers, the same ones Turner used. As Charlie gets to know Sir Alan, she discovers disquieting facts about his daughter Angela, dead of a drug overdose; and his first wife, still somewhat mentally unstable. She is reminded of her beloved grandfather, also a painter, and her own suicide attempt. The parallels in their lives both repel and attract Charlie to Alan. Charlie's patient husband Nick, who has lived apart from her for years, and her best friend Carrie, try to provide a stable backdrop for Charlie, and what they see as a possibly problematic relationship. As Charlie's book, Paper Chase, is finished, and their relationship draws them closer together, several startling and frightening events in the lives of the lovers change them forever. Taylor Holden was a journalist for the Daily Telegraph, covering Northern Ireland, Eastern Europe, and the Middle East. This is her first novel. Armchair Interviews says: Lots of clues about relationships Charlie Holden ignores.

Thinking of doing a book on the great early nineteenth century English romantic landscape artist JMW Turner, Charlie, on a whim to contain her internal demons, visits artist supply store L. Cornelissen & Sons. There she becomes fascinated with all the different types of paper on sale, mumbling out loud which paper JMW Turner would choose. Another customer responds saying none of these. He is highly regarded artist and Turner expert Alan Matheson. They talk over coffee as she thinks this is happenstance that they have met. As he encourages her paper chase, they begin to fall in love, but he has as many troubles as she does especially from live and dead females that lead to Charlie's need to know the truth. THE SENSE OF PAPER is an excellent modern day love story with a deep look at paper choices somewhat available today but especially during the nineteenth century and its importance to Turner. The mystery of the death of Matheson's daughter adds depth to understanding his ghosts and motives. Yet the core of this exquisite novel is the heroine who seeks something to affirm her reason for living; she may have found this as she begins to comprehend THE SENSE OF PAPER (read the novel to comprehend the subtly of the title) during her research with Alan at her side encouraging her. Harriet Klausner